U.S. President Donald Trump has told African leaders he will send his U.N. envoy Nikki Haley to South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
"We're closely monitoring and deeply disturbed by the ongoing violence in South Sudan and in the Congo," Trump said in a lunch meeting Wednesday with African leaders on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly.
"Millions of lives are at risk and we continue to provide humanitarian assistance, but real results in halting this catastrophe will require an African-led peace process, and a sincere — really sincere — commitment of all parties involved."
The president said Haley would "discuss avenues of conflict and resolution and, most importantly, prevention."
South Sudan is mired in the fourth year of a civil war that has displaced some four million people, while Congo has experienced growing unrest due to communal clashes and uncertainty on when the country will hold elections. Congolese President Joseph Kabila has stayed in office past the end of his mandate in December 2016.
Trump also noted that six of the world's 10 fastest-growing economies are in Africa.
"Africa has tremendous business potential. I have so many friends going to your countries trying to get rich," Trump said. "I congratulate you, they're spending a lot of money. But it does, it has tremendous business potential, and representing huge amounts of different markets, and for American firms it's really become a place they have to go, that they want to go."
On Tuesday, the Trump administration extended Temporary Protected Status for nationals of South Sudan, but said it will end the designation for citizens from Sudan in 2018.
At the end of last year, 1,039 Sudanese and 49 South Sudanese nationals held TPS status.
